twisted yarns, unraveled

Tag: seals

While searching for art and images related to selkies, I came upon a series of 10 beautiful postage stamps from the Faroe Islands that deserve their own post. They were inspired by the story of Kópakonan, or the Seal Woman, and designed by Edward Fuglø.

Selkies are one of my favorite mythical/supernatural creatures, no doubt related to the melancholy nature of the legends told about them. Look, if it’s not absurdly bloody, heart-crushingly sad, or at least suitably bittersweet, it’s no good. And the various selkie legends have got those criteria covered.

Since it’s National Poetry Month and also crunch time in my classes, I thought I’d get in a quick post with a poem of my own. I actually wrote this seven years ago (!!!!), though I’ve tweaked it a little. It’s based off a bit of lore I came across online, that one way to summon a selkie (specifically, a male one) is to shed seven tears into the sea.

Fittingly enough, I composed it in the shower.

The Selkie’s Complaint

Down on the strand where no one would follow
I knelt in the sand, wetting my knees,
and into the water I dropped seven sorrows;
with the last, a man arose from the sea.

Clad to the waist in tumbling wavelets,
he held me in place with well-oiled eyes.
A hint of annoyance lit his dark gaze,
as might be reserved for a bothersome fly.

His mouth when it opened let out a voice
raspy and thick, unused to speech,
but the words themselves held clear enough meaning:
“This soup is already too salty for me.”

I’ll get more in-depth about selkies — what they are, the tales told about them, and so on — in my next post.

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This blog is written by Amanda Cibulka, who entered the dark labyrinth of lore and legend years ago, and has been lost there ever since. Come on in. Bring your own thread, and try not to to trip on any bones.More